Awakening
by Curondhil
Summary: When the Dragonborn is incapacitated, it is up to the Wolf-Twins to save her. So Vilkas and Farkas set out on an adventure that would amaze even the Dovahkiin.
1. Prologue

_Just a little something I thought of today. Time for some Companion-badassery really._

_You can probably tell be the tone of the story that I'm going through dark times. I hope this story will cheer me up a bit, and, of course, entertain all of you._

_As always, comments are appreciated!_

_Rated T for now just to be safe, might change later._

* * *

It had been raining for weeks.

Thunder echoed in the distance as the seemingly never-ending storm darkened the skies.

Vilkas tended the flames of the hearth-fire in Windstad Manor, trying to keep the house warm despite the icy cold outside trying to sneak into the building. The roof of the master bedroom was leaking, but Vilkas lacked the necessary timber to fix the damage, and since he gave the steward and the housecarl leave there was nobody to supply him with the things he required.

He added more wood to the dying flames and tried not to think of her. The way she was. The way they were.

Instead he shook his head and stretched his limbs. This was his life now, and it would possibly be for good.

As he was about to go upstairs, a loud knock on the door, easily mistaken for thunder, startled the Companion out of his thoughts and back into reality. Who would seek them out in such weather?

He made sure his broadsword was securely strapped to his back as he approached the entrance hall. His thoughts ran wild. This was bound to be either trouble or bad news.

As he opened the door, he was greeted with the sight of a young, hooded man. A Nord in mages-robes it seemed, wet to the bones. They appraised each other for a few moments ere the stranger nodded in greeting and introduced himself.

"Forgive my unannounced visit. I am Onmund, Novice of the College of Winterhold, and I have urgent business with the Dovahkiin." He looked past Vilkas into the warm and cozy hallway, but the large Nord had no intention of inviting the stranger in.

"The Dragonborn is not here" he said, as so often these last months.

Onmund just frowned. "Are you certain?" Vilkas growled in response. "I would have noticed if she was here, don't you think? Now state your business and begone, or just leave. Either is fine with me."

Onmund took a step back and held up his hands defensively. "I am sorry, I meant no offense. It is just... Nobody seems to have seen or heard of her in ages. However, there are some urgent matters only the Dragonborn can see to. If you see her... when you see her, will you please let her know her presence is required at the college as soon as possible?"

Vilkas just nodded, not really paying attention to the mage. "Of course."

Without a further word, he slammed the door shut, leaving the bewildered other man outside in the cold.

He heard himself repeat the same old lie over and over and over again. He chose Windstad Manor because he thought it to be safe from prying eyes, hoping to find some peace and quiet, to offer the Dovahkiin the rest she deserved. But somehow they always found them.

The stairs screamed under his heavy footsteps as he made his way towards his beloved. The woman he swore to protect, and the whole reason his world was upside down.

She looked so small and forlorn in the double bed, mostly hidden under the blankets. As he gently removed a wild strand of hair from her face he noticed how much weight she had lost, her cheekbones now so prominent in her pale face.

Vilkas sighed in frustration. He fed her the best he could, but with her barely ever being awake, and never conscious, it was a struggle. He wondered how much longer it would take before her body shut down and ended her misery... his misery...

He shook his head in disgust. He should not even entertain such thoughts. No, he would save her, he would find out what happened to her and he would bring her back. She would wake up, he kept telling himself.

But how could he save her when he was stuck here, minding her and keeping the eyes of Tamriel away from her?

Nobody was supposed to see her like this. Helpless. Dying.

He sat at the edge of the bed and let his eyes wander over the face of the young Imperial woman.

Several months ago she returned to Jorrvaskr. Uninjured, but changed. Her smiles were gone, her eyes had lost their light. At night she would scream. Nightmares would not allow her to rest. He or his brother would hurry over to her room to check on her, night after night. It was about a fortnight later when he first saw it. The black spots in her eyes as she woke up. At first he thought he was hallucinating, but they returned and got worse with every waking night.

She refused to speak to them, to tell them what had happened to her. Only that nobody should see her like this, that was her only command.

And one night, the screams ceased. She did not wake up. And when Vilkas thought she would finally wake, as she sat up straight in bed and opened her eyes, he was greeted with blackness. She would scream incoherent things, speak in a tongue he never heard, and would never react to anything that was happening in the real world.

They had lost her.

And he had never told her what she meant to him. As he did now, night after night, whenever he held her, begging her to come back to him, to let him see her beautiful eyes one more time, only for her to tell him she did not love him... he would gladly hear it, if only she came back to them.

So he took her as far away from the cities as he could under the cloak of night, hiding her like a criminal his victim, and he brought her here. The land provided all they needed. There was plenty of fish, vegetables grew in the garden, the house even had a kitchen. He could look after her until the others found out what was wrong.

Aela and Farkas. The only ones who knew in what state their beloved Harbinger was.

And yet, as days became weeks and weeks turned into months, they found nothing.

And as the rain continued to fall over Skyrim, Vilkas remained by her side, praying and begging, offering every Daedric Prince whatever they would ask of him, if only they gave her back.


	2. Chapter 01

_Thank you all for your nice and motivating comments. Here is the first real chapter. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it._

_Please leave me a comment and tell me what you think!_

* * *

The rain never stopped.

Vilkas had lost track of time as they were slowly withering away in solitude. He barely dared to sleep in fear that she would awaken, or of the monster that seemed to have taken possession of his love forcing the young woman to do something stupid. Something lethal.

A few days after the last visitor, the college-mage, had come looking for the dragonborn, the Companion began to wonder if he should just have invited him inside. Maybe the mage could have helped her. But it was ridiculous. Of course they had asked priests for their help before, but neither Heimskr nor Danica could aid them, so why should an apprentice mage?

Lately she began to moan in her sleep. Not the pleasant kind, but rather as if she was dreaming of pain, torture and agony. She usually calmed down when Vilkas took her hand or gently touched her face. Speaking to her seemed to help as well. Often he would talk to her like one would to a child, speaking meaningless words hoping his voice alone would be enough to end her suffering.

His own voice was the only thing he heard all day. His voice and the rain. And the screaming echo of his own thoughts.

The next time someone knocked on the door, Vilkas was almost sure he had only imagined that noise. It was the kind of knock he knew very well. Three confident, loud bangs against the wood.

When the door was opened and revealed two tall, wet and heavily armed figures, Vilkas sighed in relief. His eyes lit up and he greeted his brother and shield-sister with one of his rare smiles.

However, their faces were anything but happy. Farkas greeted his brother and immediately stripped out of the heavy armour in order to dry his clothes at the hearth. Aela wrung out her hair and put her bow down, avoiding Vilkas's gaze. By the way they acted, the man with the smarts of Ysgramor knew they did not bring the news he had been praying for.

"I take it you found nothing?" His own voice sounded so strange to him. So dull and hopeless.

Aela shook her head. "I wish that was it, brother." Vilkas frowned and looked at Farkas. "It's worse than that."

With these words, Farkas bent down to his pack and retrieved a letter wrapped in leather. He handed it over to his brother whose hands began to shiver as he read. His face grew paler every second, his eyes following the elegant lines over and over again.

"This isn't true" he simply stated, his voice nearly breaking. "It cannot be true."

He averted his eyes from the treacherous piece of paper and crumpled it in his fist, his eyes blazing with anger. Aela looked at him with pity in her eyes. "That is not all we found, brother."

Once again Farkas retrieved something from his pack. An armour by the looks of it.

"What is this?" Vilkas asked as if he did not know the answer.

"It's called the Saviour's Hide. I'ts made of werewolf-fur and is a token of appreciation from Lord Hircine to his Champion" Aela said.

"I know what it is" Vilkas spat. "I want to know why you have it, and who in Oblivion wrote these lies!" He threw the letter into the open fire, watching it burn as if the contents of the treacherous piece of paper would disappear with it.

"It was in her other house" Farkas answered. "Together with 13 other Daedric Artefacts."

Vilkas clenched his teeth. "Lies! These are all lies! She is our Harbinger, she is the Dragonborn, saviour of Tamriel! I refuse to believe she is the Champion of any Daedra, nevermind ALL of them!" Aela shook her head with pity in her eyes. "It was hard for us to believe as well, so we investigated. The woman who wrote this letter..." here she sent a pleading look over to Farkas. Whatever was next would not be easy.

"Say it already!" Vilkas commanded. "We... convinced her to bring us to the shrine where it all began. Where our Harbinger became the Champion of Namira. We could smell her presence, Vilkas. Some of her own blood had been spilt in these caves."

"That does not mean she ate a human being in there" he replied.

"We've all done it, brother" Farkas stated. "In wolf form maybe, but we all have devoured humans or elves before. Not in the name of Namira, but in the name of Hircine."

Vilkas felt his heart beat faster by the second. Of course his brother was right, but still. This couldn't be true.

"And what did you do to this person? The one who wrote this letter, claiming the Dragonborn was slave to all Daedra?" Farkas shrugged and crossed his arms over his chest. "The same thing we'd do to anyone spreading lies about our Harbinger, no matter how true they might be."

Vilkas nodded. "Good..."

He took a deep breath and turned around, feeling the sudden urge to see her face. Hoping he would see some signs that proved her guilt, or her innocence.

Suddenly he turned around and looked at Aela.

"14 Artefacts you said... but there are 16 Daedra. What about the other two?"

"We were able to identify them all... The only artefacts missing were those dedicated to Harmaeus Mora and Nocturnal."

Vilkas swallowed. "If... if all this is true, if she really was Champion of these... abominations, then there must be 16 of them."

Farkas scratched his head. "Maybe she didn't yet find them all." Vilkas looked at his brother. "Then this is where we begin." Aela took in a deep breath. "You cannot be serious!"

He tried to stab her with his eyes. "Do you have a better idea? If she was after one of these artefacts, then this must be where whatever happened to her began. Should have known the blasted Daedra had something to do with this."

"We can't, Vilkas! We don't know where to start, and even if we did, if a Daedric Prince has claimed her soul, then there is nothing we can do" Aela stated.

"That's not right" Farkas interfered. "We've reclaimed Kodlak's soul from Hircine and have the means to free ourselves as well. There must be a way to reclaim another soul from another Prince."

Vilkas's heart beat fast with new-found hope. "You are right, brother. We only have to find out how it happened."

"And how are we going to do this?" Aela sounded annoyed. "It's not like we could ask her."

"Her letters." "What are you talking about, Ice-brain?" Farkas returned to his pack, presenting his shield-siblings with a big pile of papers. "I took all her letters from her other house near Dawnstar. You know, the one with all the Deadric things inside. We've only read a few so far, one being the one Vilkas just burnt. Maybe we'll find something there."

Vilkas went over to his brother and gratefully laid his hand on the bigger man's shoulder. "Thank you, brother. Maybe there is still hope." Aela sighed in defeat. "Very well, let us dry up and have a bottle of mead or two, and then let's read her personal mail, like any good friend would. I really hope you are right about this."

"You do whatever you want, but I am taking these letters" Vilkas stated. "We have lost enough times as it is. If there is any information of value in these documents, I will find it!"

Farkas sighed in relief as he saw the determination in his brother's eyes. Once they were left alone, Aela placed a hand on the tall man's shoulder. "Don't worry, Farkas. He is stronger than that. We might have lost our Harbinger, but we will not lose your brother."

The bulky Nord shook his head. "I hope you are right. He hasn't been the same since she changed."

No more words were needed. Aela smiled in acknowledgement and proceeded to dry up.

Farkas did not bother too much with drying his hair. A fresh pair of trousers and a linen shirt later he found himself at the very spot his brother frequented so often. The Harbinger looked much worse than she had the last time he had seen her. He did not really know how to describe her. She didnt't look like a corpse or someone who was dying, it was more as if she was fading away, like a flower. The colour in her cheeks was gone, but she was still the same. Only different. Farkas rubbed his eyes with his palms. Good thing he would never have to describe her state to anybody, he surely wouldn't be able to anyway.

Her eyes were moving under the eyelids as if she were dreaming, but apart from that she was completely still. It looked as if she was barely breathing, but thanks to his wolf-senses Farkas knew her heart was beating normally.

He had always liked the girl, so it affected him a lot when she changed the way she did, but while he was ready to let go in order to save his own sanity, his brother was not. And at this moment, Vilkas was Farkas's main concern. Of course he wanted to save the girl if he could, but he did what he did mostly for his brother. How this was supposed to end he knew not. Also he did not care as long as it found an end soon.

His thoughts were interrupted by Aela who joined him at their Harbinger's side. The older woman affectionately brushed a few lose strands of blond hair out of her unconscious comrade's face. They had been like sisters every since Kodlak died. Aela too felt helpless. She had lost too many people she loved already, and had no real family left. The twins and the Dragonborn were the closest friends she had, the only ones who not only shared her secret, but accepted her despite their different views on the blood. To see their strong and fearless leader like this broke her heart.

"Do you think she knows we are here?" Farkas suddenly asked. "I don't know, but I hope she does" Aela answered. "I do not know where she is right now, but I pray she knows she is not alone, even if we cannot stand by her side this time." She took the sleeping woman's hand and gave it a light squeeze.

They were silent for a few minutes when Farkas decided to go and check on his brother. "Maybe Vilkas could use a hand with all these letters." Aela nodded and turned her attention and thoughts back to her unconscious friend.

Farkas entered the library tower and soon found his brother who had fallen asleep over a pile of letters, his head resting on his arms. The bigger man smiled. Now Aela and himself were here, his brother did not constantly need to worry about the Dragonborn and could finally get some rest. It seemed the sleepless nights demanded their tribute right now. He tried to shift his brother into a more comfortable position that would also allow him to access the stack of letters buried underneath his arms without waking the other man. Normally the beast within would make sure they woke at every single noise or movement, but Vilkas was out like a light.

As Farkas carefully moved his brother, a few stray letters fell to the ground. As he picked them up, his eyes fell onto the name of the addresser and he immediately took in a deep breath. It said _Ralis Sedarys, Raven Rock, Solstheim_. The letter had been sent less than three months ago, just before the Dragonborn had last been conscious, and its contents indicated previous correspondence. Farkas immediately began to search the papers for more letters. He never knew their Harbinger had friends in Morrowind, never mind had been there herself, so he was more than surprised to find that they must have had some business, and the Dragonborn's presence had been requested several times. The last letter, which he still found unopened, only said "_Come quickly_". This letter, however, had been written when their Harbinger was already in her current state.

Something in him began to stir. He did not know what to make of these letters, but he felt as if he had just solved a mystery. He immediately made his way back to Aela and presented the letters to her. She first scanned the envelopes. "This is unusual..." she said. Farkas's brow furrowed. "What do you mean?" Aela handed him an envelope. "It is addressed to _Brina Stormblade, Heljarchen Hall, The Pale, Province of Skyrim_." Farkas shrugged. "Her name and her address." Aela sighed in defeat. "Yes, but no title, Ice-brain. Normally people would address her with at least one of her titles, depending on the business they have with her. We would address her as Harbinger, most Jarls would call her Thane, the normal people at least Dragonborn. Here, however, there is no title at all."

Farkas frowned. "And what does that tell us?" The woman shook her head. "I am not sure yet... maybe they don't know who she really is?" "Or maybe you are just overanalyzing things" he replied. "Maybe I am..." Aela said quietly. "Anyway, this might indeed be what we have been looking for. Now let's all get some rest, I have a feeling we will need our strength."

Farkas nodded in agreement. He felt restless. Something inside of him was awakening, as if he was about to go hunting. There was an adventure ahead him, he could almost smell it.


End file.
